Tom Wolf surges to lead in 2 polls amid TV ad blitz

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrat Tom Wolf surged in Pennsylvania’s gubernatorial race following a monthlong blitz of television ads, according to a pair of independent polls released Wednesday.

A statewide survey by Connecticut-based Quinnipiac University on Wednesday indicated that 52 percent of Pennsylvania voters would support the York businessman, compared to 33 percent for Republican Gov. Tom Corbett if the general election were held Wednesday.

The poll showed five other Democratic candidates also outpolling Corbett — U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz, state Treasurer Rob McCord, former Auditor General Jack Wagner and former state environmental protection chiefs Katie McGinty and John Hanger — but none received more than 44 percent in the hypothetical matchups. Corbett’s support was in the high 30s.

“Today, Gov. Tom Corbett might tie a few possible Democratic challengers, but he beats no one,” said Tim Malloy, assistant direct of the university’s Polling Institute.

A poll by Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster released Wednesday indicates that 48 percent of the Democratic voters are undecided. Among those who have made up their minds, Wolf leads with the support of 36 percent of party members, Schwartz with 9 percent, McCord with 3 percent and McGinty and Hanger with 1 percent each.

Wolf, who has contributed $10 million to his campaign, has been airing TV ads statewide since Jan. 30. The Franklin & Marshall poll cited the ads as the likely reason for his surging support.

Among the two-thirds of Democrats who have seen a TV commercial for governor, 88 percent recalled seeing a Wolf commercial, the poll said. Fifty-six percent of those who had seen a Wolf commercial said they support his candidacy, it said.

The Quinnipiac telephone survey of 1,405 voters was conducted between Feb. 19 and 24. It carries a sampling error margin of plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.